The Dangerous Journey
by Tove Jansson
Get swept away in this otherworldly adventure to Moominvalley through treacherous yet beautiful landscapes
Tove Jansson takes us on a beautifully illustrated and delightfully quirky journey through Moominvalley, perfectly capturing the experience and its emotional impact as seen through the innocent eyes of Susanna, who is bored with her life: Her cat is too content; her surroundings, too gentle. She craves adventure when there is none to be had. But when a new pair of glasses appears in front of her, she gets an opportunity to live the bold life that she has always longed for as her surroundings are transformed into a dark and sinister landscape. At first Susanna is afraid, but then her daring side takes over and she moves forward to an unknown destination, seeing some familiar faces along the way. Combating everything from an exploding volcano to a fierce winter storm, from mysterious monsters to stormy seas, Susanna and her newfound friends are given the adventure of a lifetime. With subtle existential themes, a lyrical rhythm, and delicate watercolor illustrations, The Dangerous Journey captures the curiosity of children and adults alike. Published for the first time in North America, and the last picture book completed by the world-renowned Jansson, The Dangerous Journey pushes the emotions that underlie our nostalgia out into the open with an unparalleled viewpoint that always brings forth a new perspective. Take this fantastical journey to Moominvalley and never look back.
Hardcover
English
Brand New
Author Biography
Tove Jansson (1914 - 2001) was a legendary Finnish children's book author, artist, and creator of the Moomins, who came to life in children's books, comic strips, theater, opera, film, radio, theme parks, and TV.
Review
"Here is where Jansson's weird but true world begins; where fear, loneliness and insecurity are banished by love and the force of imagination." --Time "[Jansson's] work soars with lightness and speed, and her drawingsonly echo her writing: delicate but precise, observant yet suggestive . . . Jansson was exceptional, an exuberant explorer of emotional independence and interdependence, a liberating force." --Los Angeles Times Book Review "A lost treasure nowrediscovered--one of the sweetest, strangest comics strips ever drawn or written. A surrealist masterpiece. Honest." --Neil Gaiman, author of Sandman "Moominis gorgeous, and is flat out the best Moomin book I've ever seen. Tove Jansson was a natural cartoonist. These strips are clever, gentle, witty, andcompletely engrossing." --Jeff Smith, cartoonist of Bone
"In the "Moomins" creator Tove Jansson's THE DANGEROUS JOURNEY... [Susanna] finds a pair of glasses that reveal the nightmare under the surface of things...unlike 99 percent of children's books, we are left without the reassurance that all is right in the end... Normal is perhaps a thing of the past."--New York Times
Review Quote
"Here is where Jansson's weird but true world begins; where fear,loneliness and insecurity are banished by love and the force of imagination." -- Time "[Jansson's] work soars with lightness and speed, and her drawingsonly echo her writing: delicate but precise, observant yet suggestive . . . Jansson was exceptional, an exuberant explorer of emotional independence and interdependence, a liberating force." -- LosAngeles Times Book Review "A lost treasure nowrediscovered--one of the sweetest, strangest comics strips ever drawn or written. A surrealist masterpiece. Honest." --Neil Gaiman, author of Sandman "Moominis gorgeous, and is flat out the best Moomin book I've ever seen. Tove Jansson was a natural cartoonist. These strips are clever, gentle, witty, andcompletely engrossing." --Jeff Smith, cartoonist of Bone "In the "Moomins" creator Tove Jansson's THE DANGEROUS JOURNEY... [Susanna] finds a pair of glasses that reveal the nightmare under the surface of things...unlike 99 percent of children's books, we are left without the reassurance that all is right in the end... Normal is perhaps a thing of the past."-- New York Times
Details
